First, Kandice Pelletier, last year’s Miss New York and a former Rockette, is a member of one of the teams. getting its start in Seattle on May 27 in Gas Works Park, the place where The Amazing Race 3 concluded.

Just thinking out loud here....no sight of the famous TAR Fanny Pack w/ red/yellow stripes in ANY of these photos. Hmm...still thinking out loud here....I thought, as per previous TAR rules, that the pack had to be worn by one of the racers, in plain sight. Hmm.....better stop thinking....brain is starting to hurt.....

'Amazing Race' host Phil KeoghanPASADENA, Calif. -- The 10th edition of "The Amazing Race" will kick off with one of the most diverse groups of teams the show has ever had.

The Emmy-winning series, which moves to Sundays in the fall, will feature 12 teams this time, up from the usual complement of 11. Racers include the show's first-ever Muslim team -- a pair of Browns-loving best friends from Cleveland -- along with an Indian-American couple, an amputee (Sarah Reinertsen) who competes in triathlons and a father and his lesbian daughter.

And, yes, there are a couple of models, as well as a pair of Miss USA contestants.

"The range in this cast is remarkable," host Phil Keoghan told reporters Saturday at the Television Critics Association press tour. "We've never had such a broad spectrum of people."

The 12 teams will be put to the test right away, executive producers Bertram Van Munster and Jonathan Littman say. Instead of "easing in" to the competition by sending the teams to Europe or South America first, the teams will first head to China after starting in Seattle.The racers will also travel to Mongolia, Kuwait, Vietnam and Madagascar. In all, the race will cover some 40,000 miles in 30 days.

Amazing Race' moves to new night, timeBETH HARRISAssociated PressPASADENA, Calif. - An Indian husband and wife, a gay couple and two Muslim friends are among the 12 teams that will compete in "The Amazing Race" this fall.

The three-time Emmy-winning reality show is moving to Sunday nights at 8 p.m. on CBS. Its 10th season will start in Seattle, with the teams traveling westward for the first time and stopping in China, Mongolia, Vietnam, Kuwait and Madagascar, among other countries.

They will travel more than 40,000 miles in under 30 days in pursuit of the $1 million prize.

"This cast is as different as it's ever been," executive producer Bertram van Munster told the Television Critics Association's summer meeting. "It's meltdown city on this trip."

Van Munster said the language barrier made traveling difficult for the teams, along with 130-degree heat in Kuwait and filming in Communist countries. In Vietnam, the government insisted on viewing daily footage but didn't request any changes or cuts.

"The show worldwide is extremely popular and that has helped us," he said.

The teams announced Saturday are:

_ Vipul Patel, 29, and Arti Patel, 26, of Windermere, Fla., They are the first Indian-Americans on the show.

_ Brothers Erwin Cho, 32, and Godwin Cho, 29, of San Francisco.

_ Tom Rock, 39, and Terry Cosentino, 45, a gay couple from New York City.

3:12 pm | S.C. cheerleaders on 'Amazing Race'MARK WASHBURNTV/Radio WriterPASADENA, Calif. -- Two Carolinians will compete in the next -- and most grueling to date -- season of "The Amazing Race."

Best friends Kellie Patterson and Jamie Hill, former cheerleading co-captains at the University of South Carolina, will be one of the 12 teams racing to Beijing for the show, starting its 10th season this fall.

Both are 22 and live in Columbia. Patterson is a student in broadcast journalism at the university and Hill is a recent graduate.

This race will hit 13 countries, including Vietnam, Kuwait, Mongolia and Madagascar, CBS announced Saturday to television critics gathered in California for fall previews. The teams will travel more than 40,000 miles in less than a month.